Heir Apparent
by Dawn Deianira
Summary: A shocking revelation from the past brings Artemis Fowl into the fairy world once more - only this time, there's a bounty on his head. Warlocks, spells, time travel, Neutrino 2030s, and the usual. Chapter 2 up (finally).
1. Awakening

**Heir Apparent**

Chapter One - Awakening 

It had sat, waiting, for centuries - maybe millenia. Encased, benign and dormant, in plexiglass, looking for all intents and purposes like a beautiful, harmless thing. The only reason it was in the museum was because it had been unearthed from under an oak tree at Tara, embedded in a large rock, which had markings on it no one could decipher. 

Hardly anyone remembered it was still around. The museum, after all, had many more exhibits, each and every one of greater interest - the phlegm pot used by Frond, a Softnose laser from the B'wa Kell uprising, the famous Wall of Moving Pictures which depicted the time before the Mud People had driven them underground. Who would cast a second glance at something which seemed to be nothing more than a pretty decoration, a mere accessory? 

But still it waited, and bided its time. Not long, now. 

* * * 

_Police Plaza, Haven City, The Lower Elements_

Julius Root was polishing his commander's acorns, and would not rest till they gleamed. After all, if he didn't deserve to look good, who did? 

He cast his mind back on the relative peacefulness of the past three years. Aside from the occasional stray troll, shuttle accident, and nuclear leakage, there had been little of real significance to bother LEPrecon. Except for that one little affair with Mulch Diggums and the Fowl boy...which Root rather appreciated, on hindsight. It had given him something to do, after all. And the satisfaction of having Mulch back in jail once more was immense. Root was perversely tempted to let him out just so he could catch him again. Sort of like fishing. 

Yes, life was good. His acorns shone so brightly he could see his reflection in them. 

It was at that moment that Captain Holly Short decided to fling open his door in a rage. 

* * * 

Holly's mother had been beautiful and exotic, qualities which first attracted Holly's father to her. He hadn't bargained, however, for the fiery temper that accompanied them. Neither had he realised their daughter would grow up to be like her mother in every way, except for her height. 

Holly prided herself on her levelheadedness. But when something seriously got on her nerves, she was probably the only Recon officer who could match Commander Root in temper. Hadn't she once whacked Artemis Fowl between the eyes, and knocked the boy into a snowdrift - in front of Butler? 

Happy memories. 

She shut her eyes and shook her head. She didn't want to think about Butler just then. Or Artemis. No, the current object of her wrath was another fairy - her partner, to be exact. Sorry as she had been to see Grub reassigned to LEPretrieval, she couldn't help feeling relieved; gone were the days of listening to endless whining about hangnails, stubbed toes, and exaggerated versions of his encounter with Butler. 

It had seemed like an innocent enough task, at first. All Holly had to do was take the new Recon officer under her wing - well, figuratively - make sure the new recruit toed the line, and didn't get shot, blown up, seen by Mud Men, assaulted by goblins, killed, or damaged in any other way. She had had no problems with this arrangement, until she found out who the newest member of LEPrecon was. 

Two weeks had gone by since then - two weeks of frustration, aggravation, and mounting annoyance that would have reduced Holly to tearing her hair out, had she more of it. She was most definitely at the end of her rope. Root would have to do something about it, or she'd eat her Neutrino. 

She paused mid-stride, and flung open his door in a rage. 

Commander Julius Root was seated at his desk, meticulously polishing his acorns, and looking pleased with himself. Not for long he wouldn't, thought Holly. He looked up as she walked in and stood in front of him, arms crossed, unsmiling. "Yes, Captain Short?" 

Holly tried to stay calm. "Commander, I need to discuss a change of partner with you." 

"Partner? Who's your partner?" 

"Who's my partner!" choked Holly. "Why, only Corporal Lili Frond, the bimbo face of the LEP!" 

Root didn't bat an eyelid. "Oh, Frond." 

"Oh, Frond," mimicked Holly sarcastically. "That airhead! Do you know how hopeless she is? She can't fly a shuttle straight. She carries a hairbrush in her holster. She wouldn't recognise a criminal if he painted "ARREST ME" in red on his forehead and tap-danced in front of her!" 

"Holly - " 

"She reports late. She giggles. She flirts with _everyone!_" 

"_Holly - _" 

"_And_ she insists on applying moisturiser every hour on the hour!" 

"_Captain Short!_" 

Holly paused for breath, slightly flushed. "Yes, Commander?" 

Root's face was mildly purple, and his fingers drummed out an irritated tattoo on the table. "So what would you have me do?" 

"Get her off my back. Assign her to another partner. Tell her to go it alone. Even better, sack her from Recon. Whatever! Why did I have to get her in the first place?" 

"That's obvious. You're both girls," Root explained, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. 

Holly flared up. "That's absolutely irrelevant, Commander!" 

Ignoring her, Root reached across his table and picked up a file containing paperwork that had just come in. _To Do: check security at Disneyland Paris, file report on last week's refugee goblin. Memo from Traffic: Accident outside Spud's Spud Emporium - any eyewitnesses? Memo from front desk: Theft in museum - aid required. Memo from..._

"Commander?" Holly snapped impatiently. "What about my request?" 

A slight smirk played around Root's lips. "Corporal Frond is not entirely incompetent, Holly. She's a better shot than you are." 

Holly took a deep breath and crossed her arms again. "I'll give you that, Commander, but that's the only thing she can do!" 

Root put down the file and looked up at Holly. "I'm sorry, Captain, but..." 

Just at that moment, there was a timid knock on the door, and a sprite stuck his head in. 

"Excuse me, Commander Root, but there's something just cropped up. Urgent meeting. Executive Booth." 

Holly turned curiously. Access to the Executive Booth was limited to commanders and Council members. "Are captains to be at the meeting?" she asked anyway. 

The sprite shook his head, and hovered in the doorway, waiting. 

Root got on his feet quickly, pinning his newly polished acorns back on his uniform. "I'll be right there." 

Holly shot him a look. "My request, Commander - " 

Root made a dismissive gesture. "We'll talk about it later." He walked out the door, leaving Holly standing in his office, bemused and irritated. The sprite who had brought the message turned to leave after Root. 

"Wait," said Holly suddenly. The sprite paused in midair, and glanced questioningly at Holly. "Do you know what the meeting's about?" 

The sprite shook his head again. 

"Who sent you?" 

Cocking his head on one side, the sprite thought for a while before speaking. 

"The Chairman. Chairman Cahartez. And - " 

Holly, who'd begun to give up hope of extracting information from the messenger, looked up. 

"Dr Figes. Head of the Historical Research Department." 

* * * 

**Author's Note:** Thanks for reading! (hint: I like reviews.) Surprising as it may sound, I do know where this story is going. And hopefully, future chapters will be longer. 

Next Chapter: Holly eavesdrops liberally, Foaly frets, Artemis plays chess, and a certain rock becomes very important. 

Disclaimer: The plot and words are mine. Everything else belongs to Eoin Colfer. Feedback? Email deianira@graffiti.net or leave a note at my LJ: livejournal.com/users/eternalkismet 


	2. Stirrings

****

Heir Apparent

Chapter Two - Stirrings

Executive Booth. Restricted Access. Commanders and Council only.

Root opened the door of the LEP Executive Booth with more than a small measure of apprehension, and a feeling he dimly recognised as - yes - _fear_. Fear! He, Commander Julius Root, who prided himself on having nerves of steel, would like nothing better at that moment to be back in his office and having it out with Holly. At least he knew where he stood there. He was in control. He had the power.

Root was not a man who had irrational fears about things, unlike some other officers he knew. Foaly, for one, was paranoid about having his security system breached, and after Opal Koboi managed to do just that, he'd spent about three-quarters of his budget on encasing the entire Ops Booth in adamantine. Corporal Lili Frond, as he was sure Holly had discovered, was terrified of fire and sunlight, both of which she claimed dried her skin and caused premature aging. And Grub Kelp, of course, was afraid of _everything_.

No, Root feared nothing - with one exception.

Failure.

He clearly remembered the last time he had been summoned to the Executive Booth. His first assignment as Commander - and his only failure to date. That one disastrous trip to the Executive Booth had saddled him with half the responsibility for the destruction of Atlantis, which had been peacefully existing underwater ever since they were forced to sink themselves in 9000BC. The oldest fairy civilisation existing at that time, utterly wiped out by armies of trolls he and his Atlantean compatriot had been unable to stop.

Now, hundreds of years later, Atlantis had been rebuilt and transformed into a thriving trade centre. But Root had never been able to shake the guilt that haunted him, nor the nightmares of screaming children that started occuring and recurring soon after the incident. And he had never been able to dissociate the Executive Booth with calamity and failure.

As he stepped into the deceptively harmless room and took his seat, he fingered his Neutrino almost reflexively. There was silence and tension in the air. Chairman Cahartez greeted him with a tense nod, and even Vinyaya, who had always been friendlier with him than the rest of the council, could only muster up the smallest of smiles. In front of the room stood Dr Orlando Figes, the youthful new head of the Historical Research Department. Some distance away, there was a large, smooth rock that would have been entirely unremarkable if not for the rows of writing that covered its face.

Cahartez turned to Figes. "The council and commanders are assembled. You may now share your discovery."

Figes nodded. Despite his youth - he was a few years Holly's junior - Orlando Figes was one of the brightest students the Historical Academy had ever seen, especially skilled at archaeology. Although somewhat shy, he usually radiated confidence when it came to historical matters, where he was in his element. Right now, though, he looked anything but comfortable. His eyes were ringed with dark circles, his fingers twitched, and Root could see some smudges on his lab coat, highly unusual for the fastidious doctor.

"Have any of you ever heard of the Staff of the Ages?" began Figes.

There were blank looks all around. Except on Cahartez's face, which had settled itself into a bleak, serious expression.

Figes cleared his throat. "Well, this is it," he said, pressing a button on the slide projector. It whirred to life, and an image appeared on the large white screen behind.

It was a long, slender staff, much taller than most of the People - in fact, the perfect height for a Mud Man to hold. Etched around its base was a pattern of swirling lines. Similar markings adorned the top, and embedded sparsely through the body of the staff were tiny stones that sparkled when they caught the light. Diamonds. The staff itself was pale, shimmering silver, resembling white gold. Atop it sat a delicate, glowing crystal sphere, about the size of a large fist, and held in place by silver tendrils that curled around its lower half.

Root had never been one to appreciate beauty, but even he could see the staff was a work of art. It looked familiar for some reason, but he couldn't quite place it.

"The Staff of the Ages," explained Figes, "was unearthed from under an oak tree in Tara, about 1500 years ago. But it is considerably older than that; carbon and infra-red dating have placed its origins in the time before the People were forced underground by Mud Men. Its age is what has given it its name."

"But more importantly," continued the young doctor, "it was found embedded in this." He took a few steps away from the slide projector, and laid a hand on the rock beside him. Next to it, he suddenly looked somewhat smaller.

Councillor Lope leaned forward, examining the symbols on the rock. "What language is this?" he inquired.

"That's something the Historical Research Department has been puzzling over since they found this rock, Councillor," replied Figes. He paused to push a stray blonde hair out of his eyes. "Or rather, they worked on it for a while, and then gave up. Neither the staff nor the rock seemed to embody any special qualities, and no one had been able to figure out anything significant about them. Until yesterday."

Root straightened his spine, almost subconsciously.

"Yesterday, the Translation team had a breakthrough."

"Well, yes, doctor, but what does it _say_?" asked Vinyaya impatiently. Root was glad for the interjection.

"I'm coming to that," said Figes, looking slightly harried. "It's a message carved by the warlock who crafted the staff. He was exiled to live with the Mud People for crimes against the fairy folk, and this staff," he gestured to the image on the screen, which was now revolving slowly, "was his means of exacting revenge."

"What was his name?" asked Councillor Bild.

"Vane," Figes said, slowly. "Nimbus Vane. He signs off here," he added, indicating a small line of symbols near the bottom.

All eyes turned curiously to Councillor Trent Vane, who was seated beside Chairman Cahartez, and looking mildly shocked. "I can assure you, ladies and gentlemen, that I have no knowledge whatsoever of my ancestor's doings," Vane said urbanely, his fingers steepled. "My appetite to know more is surely greater than anyone's here. If Dr Figes would be so good as to continue - "

"Of course." Figes hurriedly picked up where he left off. "The message is written in a language we have termed Old Gnommish, and its style and inflections make it impossible to translate directly into Gnommish. But, in a nutshell, it prophesies that the warlock's heir will return, and should he be reunited with the Staff of the Ages on or after his eighteenth birthday, he will use it to utterly destroy the People." He paused to let this sink in. "That's why no one's been able to decipher it before," he added. "The message was enchanted to be incomprehensible until the heir starts to approach eighteen."

Root blinked. "Is that it? Can't we just destroy the staff?"

Figes coughed, looking almost embarrassed. "There are two problems with that solution, Commander. Firstly, only the specified heir can destroy it. Secondly, well - the staff's been stolen."

Root jumped in his seat. Of course - that was where he had seen the staff before. There had been a somewhat dim and grubby photograph attached to the memo from the museum requesting his help.

Chairman Cahartez spoke his first words since the start of the meeting. "Since we haven't the option of removing the staff, we have to remove the other agency. The heir."

"But how do we find him?" interrupted Vane. "Many of my relatives live in Haven. All could be the heir. Or he could be someone else not bearing the name of Vane at all."

"You won't need to fear for your family, Councillor," Figes said. "Nimbus Vane left us one more hint. The heir will be a Mud Man."

"A Mud Man!" Root couldn't help exclaiming. "But how can a Mud Man be the heir of a warlock?"

"He was exiled, remember, Commander? We assume he married a Mud Woman, and raised his children as Mud People. The heir will have fairy blood, but he most likely does not realise it."

Vinyaya leaned back in her chair. "Well, then, we are safe, are we not? No Mud Man is going to come down here looking for the staff. No Mud Man knows we exist."

On the last sentence, small alarm bells started ringing in Root's head.

"I'm afraid you are mistaken, my dear Vinyaya," said Cahartez. "There are a few who do." He shot a pointed glance in Root's direction. 

The alarm bells magnified tenfold.

"With Foaly's technology, it wasn't hard to run a sweep of Mud People, until we found one family with fairy blood. A family of three, of which two have it. And of those two," Figes elaborated, "there is only one who can possibly be the heir. Only one who is approaching eighteen."

Root's breath caught in his throat. "Who is it?" he asked, not daring to hope.

"His name," said Figes, looking up from his clipboard, "is Artemis Fowl the Second."

* * *

Holly didn't feel completely comfortable with eavesdropping. Nevertheless, she had seen how Root's face turned pale when the sprite delivered his message, and her curiosity just managed to overcome her scruples. Also, the name of Orlando Figes had piqued her interest.

Every girl who had been in school with Orlando Figes knew who he was. He had been two years below her at the Academy, but that didn't stop all the girls in her class - Holly included - from developing the most massive crush on him within his first week there. He was moderately tall, with deep blue eyes, sun-streaked blonde hair, a disarming smile, and a slight tan from archaeology work that sometimes took him above ground in the daytime. What made him even more attractive was the fact that he seemed _so_ unaware of his cuteness. He was shy, soft-spoken, and always appeared genuinely surprised when a girl tried to talk to him. His passion for what he studied was another factor that Holly admired. But because she was training for the LEP and he for the Historical Research Department, she hadn't seen much of him at all.

Orlando Figes had been her first crush. Her second -

She pushed it out of mind, and walked purposefully towards the Executive Booth. It was lower down than most of the main areas, nearer the core of the earth, but that was only to be expected, given its elite nature. In fact, she had no real reason to be even approaching the area, because only commanders and members of the Council were allowed to enter the rooms there.

She strode down a walkway, trying her best to look authoritative, which was easier said than done for someone of her height. But she made it uninterrupted to the end of the corridor, where the Executive Booth was. Most other booth doors in Police Plaza were green or red, and had a small glass panel at eye level so that people could check if they were occupied before barging in on a meeting. The Executive Booth door, however, was an imposing greyish-silver, and completely opaque.

Holly steeled herself. The corridor was empty, which meant the coast was clear. Bending down, she applied her ear to the small space in between the base of the door and the ground. She strained to listen, but only snatches of conversation filtered through. "old Gnommish...staff...Mud Man..."

The first voice belonged to Orlando Figes. She recognised it instantly - it was youthful, earnest and mellifluous. The third voice was undoubtedly Root's. She wasn't sure of the second - probably a council member.

She cast another furtive glance up the corridor. Hastily, she withdrew her small handgun, emptied all the bullets on the floor, and began to pick them up slowly. Realistically speaking, "I was taking a walk down the restricted corridor when I suddenly dropped all my handgun bullets" wasn't a very plausible excuse, but it was the best she could think up at that moment.

She grit her teeth, and leaned closer to the bottom of the door, trying to catch more of what they were saying. Suddenly, she heard Dr Figes mention a name she thought she'd never hear again.

Her face blanched. "D'Arvit," she swore.

Up the corridor, footsteps were rapidly approaching. With a tremendous amount of effort, Holly pulled herself away from the door, and began picking up her bullets quickly.

* * *

"Artemis Fowl," repeated Root numbly. Shock, mingled with a tinge of resignation, flowed through him. "Not again."

"Yes, Root," snapped Cahartez. "Artemis Fowl. Your department's nemesis is once again threatening the existence of our world."

All eyes were squarely on Root. Aside from Holly, he was considered the leading Fowl expert in all of the LEP. 

He sighed. "What do I have to do?"

Cahartez's eyes were steely. "Neutralise him."

Root's head snapped up. "What? Kill him? Can't we just do a mindwipe or something..." He trailed off, as he saw Cahartez firmly shaking his head, as well as a few other councillors.

"No," said Cahartez. "The Fowl boy has proven that he can outsmart us. He has gotten past our mindwipes once; he can do it again."

Vinyaya nodded in agreement. "And, if I may point out, the staff may have fallen into the hands of someone hostile who wants to reunite it with Fowl."

"You will have to remove him," Cahartez said, a note of unpleasant finality creeping into his voice.

Root winced inwardly. Despite himself, he had a grudging respect for Artemis Fowl. Like Mulch Diggums, he was becoming one of life's constants. But the Council was not to be crossed. 

He forced himself to respond. "I'll put Captain Short on the job, then."

Cahartez shook his head again. "No."

Root blinked. "Why not? She's more familiar with Fowl than anyone else in the LEP."

"That's just it, Root. She's too familiar with him. Elves are the sort of officers who form emotional attachments to people they shouldn't." Cahartez paused. "Now, if I remember correctly, there is a LEPretrieval captain who bears quite a grudge against Fowl. I shall transfer her over to your command temporarily while she takes care of him."

Root wished desperately that he had a cigar to chew at that moment. He was sure this whole operation had already been planned by Cahartez and his advisors, and they were only pretending to seek his agreement.

Still, he knew the officer they meant, and the thought of having her in his charge galled him. "You don't mean - "

Cahartez nodded. "Oh, yes. I mean Captain Rose Cudgeon." 

* * *

Holly fumed inwardly. Just when the conversation in the Executive Booth had gotten really interesting, she'd had to pick up her bullets and make an escape. And to make matters worse, Commander Root had refused to tackle her earlier complaint about Corporal Lili Frond or tell her anything about the meeting. Instead, he'd dumped an extraordinary amount of work on her. Almost as if he was trying to keep her too busy to think.

Well, she wasn't going to stand for it.

After completing a security check on Howler's Peak and interrogating yet another goblin - her seventh in two days - she headed back down to Police Plaza and made her way to the Ops Booth. Technically, she was supposed to be taking inventory of the LEPrecon weapons arsenal, but she really doubted it was necessary to do it twice daily. Besides, she had Lili Frond covering that duty for her. Holly smiled. Finally, some use for her airheaded partner.

She wondered why she hadn't thought of this earlier. No LEP operation could take place without Foaly's knowledge, therefore if anyone was going to tell her anything, it would be Foaly.

The Ops Booth door was, as usual, locked. Holly rapped her knuckles on the door a few times. "Foaly, it's me."

A small shutter just above her head opened. She looked up, and saw the centaur peering through cautiously. "Holly? Come in."

The door opened just wide enough to admit her. She stepped in, and no sooner had she entered than Foaly slammed the door shut and bolted it again. Holly rolled her eyes.

"Don't look at me like that, Holly," said Foaly, sounding aggrieved. "Did anyone see you come in? What have you got on you?"

Holly held up two guns. "Just my pistol and Neutrino. And I'm pretty sure the whole of Police Plaza saw me come in here, seeing as how your booth is in the middle of the building."

Foaly frowned. "Well. Can't be helped. Did you see any hostile agencies?"

Holly pulled out a chair and sat down. "No, I didn't. Can we get down to business now?"

Foaly peeked out of his shutter one more time. "The coast seems to be clear. Okay, what?"

"Do you remember a few days ago, all the commanders and the Council met in the Executive Booth?" Holly asked.

"Ye-es," said Foaly, slowly.

"Well, do you know what that was about?"

"Holly, I can't tell you!" said the centaur. "That's classified top-level stuff!"

"But you know what it's about?" Holly pursued relentlessly.

"Well - "

She tried another tack. "I mean, how could you not know? You're only our technology specialist and the one indispensible member of the LEP."

"Of course," agreed Foaly in an offhand way.

"So you know?"

"I suppose you wouldn't believe me if I said no?" Foaly said hopefully.

"Well. No, I wouldn't." Holly looked at him pointedly.

"Okay. Yes, yes, I know something," he gave in. "But not everything. I don't know all the details, I only know what equipment and information they've been asking me for. And that doesn't mean I'll tell you - "

"You have to tell me, Foaly!" she interrupted. "It involves Artemis, doesn't it?"

Foaly paused suddenly, mid-retort. His eyes widened. "Oh, no - "

"Oh, yes, it does!" insisted Holly. "You're a horrible liar, Foaly."

Foaly turned away and suddenly became very interested in tinkering with a Neutrino. He said nothing. There was silence for a while.

"What is it, Foaly?" Holly asked quietly. "If it has to do with Artemis, they would have come to me to handle it. But they didn't. There must be something different about this case. Who's in charge of it?"

Foaly bit his lip. "I guess I can tell you that much without giving anything away."

"Well, who?" Holly was growing impatient.

"Captain Cudgeon, from LEPretrieval. But they've transferred her to Recon for this operation."

Holly felt her heart suddenly beating faster. "What! Rose Cudgeon? You don't mean Rose Cudgeon, do you?"

"Oh, of course not. Cudgeon's such a common name. How many other Cudgeons do you know, Holly?" Foaly retorted acidly.

"Rose Cudgeon." Holly felt as if someone had knocked all the wind out of her.

"Yes, Rose Cudgeon, niece of dearly deceased Briar Cudgeon - "

"What has she been requesting from you?" Holly interrupted again.

Foaly looked very uncomfortable. "I'm afraid I can't answer that, Holly."

Holly gathered her wits with an effort. "Foaly, you don't know Rose like I do. Artemis was involved in Briar Cudgeon's death. She worshipped her uncle. And I've never known anyone who can hold a grudge like Rose can." She shuddered. "You should have seen her in school."

Foaly looked at her. "You mean - "

"I mean," she resumed, "that if there's one thing Rose can do better than I can when it comes to Artemis, it's - "

"Harming him," finished Foaly, looking stunned.

"But why would they want to do that?" said Holly softly, almost to herself. Artemis hadn't done anything to bother the People in three years. Unless they counted the incident with Fort Knox - which was, strictly speaking, a Mud Man affair.

Foaly shook his head. "I don't know, Holly. But judging from what you told me, and what Rose Cudgeon has requested - I'd say your guess isn't far off the mark."

Holly recovered her previous train of thought. "Now you know why you have to tell me everything, Foaly! You don't want anything to happen to Artemis, either."

Foaly's shoulders sagged. "I really don't know very much. She asked me for a way to sneak into Fowl Manor undetected, then she asked for enough to equip a team of fifteen Recon officers - "

"Fifteen!" Holly was shocked. "That's nearly half the department. How could I not have noticed - oh, that Commander! I knew he was keeping me busy for a reason!"

"I did think it was a bit excessive," remarked Foaly. "Oh, and she asked for a batch of the new Neutrinos."

"New Neutrinos?" asked Holly curiously. "You've upgraded the Neutrino 2000?"

"Yes!" Foaly turned to the table behind him, and picked up the Neutrino he'd been tinkering with. "Meet the Neutrino 2030! This baby runs on geothermal energy underground and solar power aboveground, and a controlled inbuilt nuclear source for night ops - somewhat like Mud Man batteries, except far more powerful and long-lasting. It cuts through the hardest of surfaces like butter - we've tested it on troll's skin, and..."

Holly cut him off before he could continue with the sales pitch. "That's really nice, Foaly. Listen, could you give me one of those, suit me up with the usual equipment, and get me to Fowl Manor before Rose and her team?"

Foaly's mouth fell open. "Holly, you're asking me to break about a dozen rules and do the impossible. I gave Rose Cudgeon the fastest route."

Holly swore. "But with a team of fifteen - she'd take time. I can move faster than her. It's only been two days since the meeting - when did you give her the info and equipment?"

Foaly thought for a moment. "This morning."

"Then there's still time!" 

Holly knew she was grasping at straws, but..._Why do I care so much for him anyway?_

She put the stray thought out of her head. _Because he's Artemis,_ came an almost subconscious reply.

* * *

Artemis sat at the black end of the chessboard, intently studying the pieces. Suddenly, he reached out for his queen, and moved it up. "Checkmate."

Butler looked surprised for a while, then he smiled. "Well. You win again, Artemis."

Artemis smiled back, and started rearranging the pieces. The chess set was made of solid gold, and the pieces were mounted on disks to differentiate their colour. Disks of ebony for the black pieces, and ivory for the white ones. It was too heavy to move around, so Artemis kept it permanently in a reading room near the Fowl Manor Library (West Wing).

One year ago, a substantial amount of gold had gone missing from Fort Knox. Despite the combined efforts of the CID and FBI, they had never been able to find it. Artemis was one of only a handful of people who knew that half the missing gold now resided in his mansion, in the form of a certain chess set. 

The other informed parties were Butler, Mulch Diggums, Holly Short and Julius Root. Mulch's half of the gold had, unfortunately, been seized by the police upon his capture - but not before he had stashed a small quantity away in Artemis' safekeeping.

Artemis had to admit to himself that since his father returned, the Fowl fortune had grown to a decent amount without any criminal activity involved, and Artemis really had no reason to pilfer America's largest gold vault. He'd done it more for the thrill of adventure than anything else, and also because - well, he felt he owed Mulch something for bringing back his memories.

After that escapade, however, he'd stuck remarkably well to the straight and narrow path. Life at the Manor had been relatively peaceful, and although he missed the fairy world somewhat, he'd promised - 

"Artemis?" Butler's voice jolted him out of his thoughts. "Would you like some tea?"

Artemis nodded. "Earl Grey, please."

Butler exited. Artemis set the last pawn into place on the chessboard, and moved across the room to where his bookshelves were. He picked out a thin volume - Machiavelli's_ The Prince_ - and seated himself in an armchair beside the window.

Night was falling. All the lights in the reading room were ablaze. Artemis reclined in his chair, opened his book, and started to read. It was becoming a nightly routine for him - play chess in the evening with his father or Butler, then read and drink tea until he got tired, or go downstairs to the computer room and work on a new project.

The last thing he expected was to hear a soft, urgent rapping at his window.

* * *

****

Author's Note: Thanks for reading, and thanks to those who reviewed the previous chapter! I'm really sorry it took almost one month to get Chapter 2 up. Exams are coming, I've been battling allergic rhinitis, and FF.net refused to let me upload anything until about 2 minutes ago. Anyway, I hope this chapter was to your liking. If you're wondering where Lili Frond vanished to, she'll be back in later chapters. Orlando Figes is the name of an actual historian - he wrote a book on the Russian Revolution, which I was studying at the time of writing this fic. Rose Cudgeon's name originated from the fact that her uncle's name was Briar, and Briar Rose was the name Aurora from Sleeping Beauty adopted when living in the woods (I'm a Disneyphile).

Next Chapter: Holly and Artemis talk, Rose goes on a rampage, and who stole the staff?

Disclaimer: The plot and words are mine. Everything else belongs to Eoin Colfer. Feedback? Review, email deianira@graffiti.net or leave a note at my LJ: livejournal.com/users/eternalkismet 


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